KEN DRYDEN GUEST SPEAKER
2008
WOOD BUFFALO SPORTS HALL OF FAME
INDUCTION DINNER
SEPTEMBER 18, 2008
Quality Inn and Conference Centre
Athlete, lawyer, commentator, writer and politician;
Ken Dryden is indeed hockey's Renaissance Man
Dryden is scheduled to be guest speaker for the Wood Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame Induction Dinner 2008 to be held
September 18, 2008 at the Quality Hotel and Conference Centre.
“We are indeed honoured to have Ken Dryden as our guest speaker this year,” said Wood Buffalo Sports Hall of
Fame Society president Curtis J. Phillips. “He epitomizes what our actual mandate is, 'Honouring the history
of sport in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. In particular those sports individuals and teams who have achieved
extraordinary distinction to the development and advancement of sport."
Elected to the Hockey
Hall of Fame in 1983,
with his jersey number 29 retired by the Montreal
Canadiens last year, Dryden, despite
the brevity of his career, only seven full seasons, was ranked No.25 on The Hockey News
list of 100 Greatest Hockey Players.
Dryden,
a Member of Parliament
for York Centre since 2004, was originally drafted 14th overall by the Boston Bruins in the 1964 National Hockey League (NHL) Amateur
Draft.
Rather than play in
Boston, Dryden pursued a Bachelor
of Arts degree at Cornell
University, where he also played hockey until
his graduation in 1969.
He also was a member
of the Canadian amateur national team at the 1969 Ice
Hockey World Championship tournament in Stockholm.
Dryden made his NHL
debut in mid-season 1971 for the Montreal Canadiens and
became the backbone of six Stanley
Cup winning teams between 1971 and 1979.
In 1972 Dryden also played for Team Canada in
the 1972 Summit Series.
His regular season totals include a .790 winning
percentage, a 2.24 goals against average, and, most incredibly, losing only 57 games while recording 46 shutouts in 397 total
games. Dryden, 61, was six time winner of the Vezina Trophy and also won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1971.
“Ken (Dryden) is a fascinating individual
with a varied career,” said Phillips, adding that last year's guest speaker was Patrick LaForge, President and CEO of
the Edmonton Oilers. “His (1983) book The Game was a best seller and he understands how the sport is part of our cultural
heritage and with its traditions has been part of the formation of our national character. He should be a fascinating speaker
indeed.”
The 2008 Wood Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame inductees
will be announced starting next week added Phillips.
For it's inaugural installation, the WBSHF honoured
last year four inductees from the categories of Athlete, Builder and Team.
They were: Nick DeHoog, long-time president
of the Fort McMurray Oil Barons of the Alberta Junior Hockey League, the 1999-2000 edition of the Fort McMurray Oil Barons
winners of the RBC Royal Bank Cup symbolic of Junior hockey supremacy in Canada, swimmer Mark Versfeld who represented Canada
at the 2000 Summer Olympics held in Australia and Ottawa Senators' defenceman Chris Phillips.
Located adjacent to the entrance at the Syncrude
Sport & Wellness Centre (SSWC), each year the WBSHF will showcase the history of each of the inductees in a permanent
manner dedicated solely to that specific induction year.
Tickets are $100 or $800 for a table of eight.
Available soon from Campbell & Cooper 212 Graystone Place or any board member
